Forum Topic

Wasting money in the NHS

Yesterday I was having  a dressing changed, I was offered the scissors the nurse used to cut a sterile dressing. She said if I didn’t take them they’d be thrown away.

Maggie Dodge ● 392d49 Comments

I thought magnesium was the one we are usually short of. So potassium too.

V Killick ● 373d

The same people moaning about waste would be the first t complain upon gettingan infection from unsterilised scissors.  The dressing pack is sterile before it is opened and as soo as it is opened can only be used for one patient. You cannot sterilise a plastic handle scissors as they melt at the high temp needed.  There shold be a method for recycling them and I put them in my sharps box for collection with my other medical waste. Sterile does not mean "a bit cleaner than other scissors" it means without germs.  We already pay for the NHS via our axes and national insurance.  If you know any Americans then you know how utterly chaotic and unequal their healthcare system is and no one wants that.  We need a government who will fund our health care properly instead of funding weopons for other countries wars and handing out contracts at mates rates

Caroline Carney ● 373d

We just expect too much from the NHS for free we should be paying something towards our treatment and equipment costs. No other country offers everything for free it’s about balance.

Jayne Thorburn ● 373d

More evidence that the NHS needs to be privatised!

Steve Taylor ● 373d

This only happens with certain specific conditions - not all.Why don't you talk to your Surgeon's secretary?

Philippa Bond ● 374d

1) I and presumably huge numbers of others have to take one drug for life, so the NHS in its wisdom gives me all my drugs for free. This started before I was an OAP.2)Today , following a second similar surgical procedure, I asked for the return of an aid, for the shower. I am more able  than after the first procedure, as my surgeon could confirm, my shower hasn’t changed, but the NHS will not provide me with this aid without coming to assess me and my shower! Wasted man hours. If they’d been as diligent with the surgical work I’d be in a better place!

Maggie Dodge ● 379d

Well this is new.  I haven't seen it before and it didn't exist when we had equipment to return.  We weren't living at the address that we needed the collection from and it was difficult to get in touch to organise collection.  There was no way we could put stuff in the hall of a block of flats on the offchance they would call / it would be s trip hazard and a fire hazard and just wasn't allowed.  We could have taken it to the GP surgery or a local clinic and in fact gave some stuff to ghe District Nurses.  The hospital and place it was issued from was many miles away and we would have needed information that wasn't available.  I had to buy an electric screwdriver (not expensive but difficult to find nearby - no neighbours had one - to remove the height adjusters on an armchair.https://www.england.nhs.uk/ahp/greener-ahp-hub/specific-areas-for-consideration/walking-aid-reuse/

Philippa Bond ● 387d

https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/nhs-clinical-waste-strategy/I  happened to read another report recently on some changes but will have to look for it.

Philippa Bond ● 387d

I believe mine have been caring,  but they really struggle to put their hands up to a mistake. I’ve yet to find out if the  mistake will have long term consequences

Maggie Dodge ● 388d

Without the details, about five minutes later, she wished that it had been :-)  All hail the power of the might suppository.

N V Brooks ● 388d

I suppose technically a bed pan ought to be beneath you ...

Chris Blackwell ● 388d

Indeed we do. I have only encountered one less than 100% caring member of staff in all my visits. An agency night nurse who believed is was beneath her to fetch a bed pan!

N V Brooks ● 388d

Only sounds like waste, Janice??

Brian Coyle ● 388d

I prefer consistency. I’ve had some wonderful treatment but I’m currently dealing with a lot of shoulder shrugging on something they missed. We all have our own experiences.

Maggie Dodge ● 388d

No, but I have a number of friends who do ranging from trainee paramedics up to senior consultants (I am friends with six) and, over the last four years, I have had more experience than many benefitting from the wonderful NHS (six operations and four emergency admissions, two of which saved my life from an underlying infection).  Five of the operations required heparin injections. Three I left hospital with a supply, the other two I had to collect from my local pharmacy.

N V Brooks ● 388d

Do you work in the NHS?

Maggie Dodge ● 388d

The schema varies by hospital and certainly varies for minor procedures

N V Brooks ● 389d

I was groggy, My husband just told  me that we came home with a prescription and they said to get it filled as a matter of urgency. But he agreed they said they didn’t have any, and the pharmacy were surprised to have to supply it and they didn’t have any either and had to get it for him

Maggie Dodge ● 389d

Not so. I had surgery 7 months ago and came home with the  necessary. They said we don’t have any. You’ll need to get it urgently from your GP

Maggie Dodge ● 389d

Correct , your 14 day course of Exoxaparin (or similar) is normally prescribed by your GP via a local pharmacy which is also responsible for any follow-up as the day surgery unit will have discharged you into their care. Your pharmacy can make an emercy 'script' for a couple of injections while they await the prescription from your GP.

N V Brooks ● 389d

Too true Keith - and probably an Assistant Scissors Acquisition Manager on work experience as well. £90K a year seems a tad low for this incredibly important work.

Brian Coyle ● 389d

So following day surgery, I’m told they don’t have the blood thinning injection I need urgently for the next 14 days. So I must get some myself as a matter of urgency. A surgery unit with no blood thinning injections? Passing the cost to my GP? No idea but a little gobsmacked

Maggie Dodge ● 390d

Register and use Patients Know Best. Most local hospitals have access to it and records are updated almost immediately. I have had records updated in the time that it takes me to get home from the appointment.https://patientsknowbest.com/

N V Brooks ● 391d

Pepple don't understand about management.

Philippa Bond ● 391d

If the ‘NHS is paying £70 to change a light bulb’ that suggests they’re using private sub-contractors, which might be the problem. Meanwhile both main political parties are suggesting the private sector gets more involved in the NHS. Hmm!

Peter Evans ● 391d

Or someone didn't update the meeting which is what you want to know.  There is enough stress involved in any hospital appointments you need to attend without not knowing if you are going to be going on the right day or not.It would be good if you could check that your appointment has been updated and confirmed by going onto your online records at the GP's (although that is a horrendously clunky system).

Philippa Bond ● 391d

Simeone pressed the wrong button then. The letters cist pennies and the bulk postage is cheap. They are auto generated depending in you stage in the admissions process. You can save the NHS money by opting to have all communications electronically. You always have this option.

N V Brooks ● 391d

I have a proceedure coming up and this included a pre-op meeting which I couldn't attend. I called the hospital to rearrange it but then received a letter in the post for the existing meeting followed by a text and an email pointing me to a web page that was also for the existing meeting. I called them again and then sure enough received the same letter, text and email for the existing meeting!I'm guessing each letter must cost a fiver and it really isn't that hard to get this stuff right.

Chris Blackwell ● 391d

35 years ago? I would have thought that you would have had a matron and a porter would be instructed to change the bulb.  Long before H & S rules.

Maggie Dodge ● 391d

It took days if not weeks plus forms in triplicate needed to get a light bulb changed in a loo at the West London Hospital 35 years ago!  Has that changed?Don't forget that in striving to get cheap just-in-time PPE (ie getting rid of the need for stocks and storage) from China where it was all being bought from when there was a pandemic there and they were suddenly unable to supply it was a disaster.  Today with the attacks on shipping in the Suez canal supplies could still be problematic.  Don't just depend on the computer - it might say 'No'!

Philippa Bond ● 391d

That sounds like waste to me.

Janice Evans ● 391d

The NHS pay £70 for an electrician to change a lightbulb.

Maggie Dodge ● 391d

The NHS is another national scandal, it’s a lottery if you get great care or not which in itself is shocking. The wastage, stealing, disorganisation, overpaid managers yet we keep accepting it and pouring more money in so the problems gets worse. Get used to it. It’s the future 😫😫😫

Jayne Thorburn ● 392d

Yes I know there is a lot of waste Steve but MRSA is in the hospitals sodon't see one use items such a waste.

Janice Evans ● 392d

“ they must have decided the cheapest and cleanest way was to buy cheap then ditch them”I doubt it. If you believe all the stories about incompetent managers etc., it’s doubtful they would look for the cheapest. They tend to go for the easy option rather than the most cost effective.

Steve Taylor ● 392d

Not quite £1 for 3cbut it took a few moments to find supersnip sterile scissors for 37p per pair

N V Brooks ● 392d

Dunelm had 3 different sizes, i pack £2.  I think scissors would have to be good quality to withstand repeated sterilising, even rust so to buy stainlesssteel scissors is expensive and then sterilising, they must have decided thecheapest and cleanest way was to buy cheap then ditch them.

Janice Evans ● 392d

I doubt the NHS use poundshop scissors.I have never seen 3 for a pound anywhere.

Keith Iddon ● 392d

I had a complex knee brace which CXH didn't want back. It was explained to me that the hours stripping it, disposing of the bits that couldn't be sterilised, sterilising the bits that could and then replacing the discarded part far exceeded the cost of simply replacing the brace.

N V Brooks ● 392d

Its possible (or at least was) possible to buya set of 3 pairs of scissors for £1 in a poundshop. 33p each. Given the quantity the NHS use it would be surprisinng if they paid over 5p a pair.As sterile, single use sissors are all over the web, presumably its cheaper than passing on infectionsmichael adams

Michael Adams ● 392d

So what you are saying is that the NHS needs to be privatised to stop all the waste.  Also heard the story of three kitchen cupboards being fitted in a hospital and the ‘contractor’ charged £18k.  And the overpaid ‘managers’ sign off on this waste.  It’s criminal.

Steve Taylor ● 392d

A lot of equipment I had delivered was taken back by the company that delivered it, but the crutches and air cast boot were not wanted. The boot has a removable liner . It’s so frustrating !

Maggie Dodge ● 392d

They always left us with a binful of waste to throw away. All those sterile packs.Just think of all the people they would need to employ to collect and transport and sort and sterilise and check the quality of all equipment.  It is hard enough when it is all in one place.  It always used to be nigh on impossible to contact the District Nurses by phone, they were different each time and we had to wait in all day for them - and when it was for a parent weren't even necessarily absolutely sure what they had actually done - or which one had called.  I later learned that you can get a print out but really what we just wanted was to exchange notes of any changes and progress etc. One of the best services we got was from a company that only dealt with electric cushions (organised through the NHS).  The young chap arrived, set it up, explained how it worked and sorted out the paperwork.  He was also easy to contact to arrange for him to collect - unlike for any other equipment.

Philippa Bond ● 392d

It's the same with crutches and other such appliances.MHS do not want them returned.

Keith Iddon ● 392d

Yes Keith, I bet they don't shop around for the cheapest deal either and some admin person must buy them by the ton. Why can they not have a small steriliser on hand .  These scissors came out of a sterilised wrapper and only touched a sterilised dressing. This was a wound dressing section, they must get through dozens a day, but they are only small and could fit plenty of them in one small unit.  I was also given a knee brace that they then decided it was too late to be of any use.  They don't want it back. I get that, but I should never have been given it in the first place.  Must be quite expensive.  No wonder the NHS is in trouble.

Maggie Dodge ● 392d

There's probably a Scissors Aquisition Manager on £90K a year.

Keith Iddon ● 392d

Always ask that mine is tested. Normally 0.1 too low so always eat a banana to correct it.

N V Brooks ● 392d

I wish they would test potassium levels in elderly patients before sending them home, so often they return home and have a fall and end up back in hospital due to low potassium level.

Janice Evans ● 392d

Sterilising everything is probably costly, cheaper to ditch them.

Janice Evans ● 392d